NETWORK OF EXCELLENCE: IMISCOE

1. NETWORK OF EXCELLENCE:IMISCOE International Migration, Integration and Social Cohesion in Europe Funded by DG Research of the European Commission Co-ordinator: Prof Rinus Penninx, Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies of the Universiteit van Amsterdam C O M M U N I C A T I N G E U R O P E A N R E S E A R C H W h a t ’ s i n i t f o r y o u ?Brussels, 11-12 May 2004

2. WHY IMISCOE? Migration and integration are topics that divide European societies, because of its paradoxical nature, for example: MIGRATION: 1. strongly restrictive versus increased migration pressure 2. free within the EU versus ‘fortress Europe’ for outsiders 3. feared for its competition versus needed for economic continuity 4. restrictive for unasked for versus welcome for wanted immigrants newcomers 5. strong regulation is demanded versus lack of efficient instruments INTEGRATION: 1. denial being immigration country versus need to integrate newcomers 2. demand for diversity /change versus for conformity and continuity 3. keeping up welfare facilities versus equal opportunities newcomers C O M M U N I C A T I N G E U R O P E A N R E S E A R C H W h a t ’ s i n i t f o r y o u ?Brussels, 11-12 May 2004

3. PARTICIPANTS IN IMISCOE • Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies (IMES) of the Universiteit van Amsterdam, Netherlands: Coordinator. • Centre d’Études de l’Ethnicité et des Migrations (CEDEM) at the University of Liège, Belgium. • Centro de Estudos Geográficos (CEG) of the University of Lisbon, Portugal. • Centre for Research in International Migration and Ethnic Relations (CEIFO) of the University of Stockholm, Sweden. • Centro de Estudos Sociais (CES) of the University of Coimbra, Portugal. • Centre for Migration, Policy and Society (COMPAS) at the University of Oxford, United Kingdom. • Research Unit on Migration, Management of Diversity and Social Cohesion (DEUSTO), University of Deusto, Bilboa, Spain. • European Forum for the Study of Migration (EFSM), at the University of Bamberg, Germany. • European Research Centre on Migration and Ethnic Relations (ERCOMER) at the Erasmus University of Rotterdam, Netherlands. • The Forum  Internazionale ed Europeo di Ricerche sull'Immigrazione (FIERI) in Turin, Italy. C O M M U N I C A T I N G E U R O P E A N R E S E A R C H W h a t ’ s i n i t f o r y o u ?Brussels, 11-12 May 2004

4. PARTICIPANTS IN IMISCOE (continued) • International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) in Vienna, Austria. • Institute for Migration Research and Intercultural Studies (IMIS), University of Osnabrück, Germany. • Institut National d’Études Démographiques (INED), Section of International Migration and Minorities, in Paris, France. • ISR/IWE Research Units of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna, Austria. • Migrations Internationales, Espaces et Sociétés (MIGRINTER) at the University of Poitiers, France. • Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute (NIDI), The Hague, Netherlands. • Swiss Forum for Migration and Population Studies (SFM/FSM) at the University of Neuchâtel, Switzerland. • Sussex Centre for Migration Research (SCMR) of the University of Sussex in Brighton, United Kingdom. • SociNova of the New University of Lisbon, Portugal. C O M M U N I C A T I N G E U R O P E A N R E S E A R C H W h a t ’ s i n i t f o r y o u ?Brussels, 11-12 May 2004

5. CHARACTERISTICS OF PARTICIPANTS: • all are established legal institutes of some duration. • selected on their past performance, particularly international comparative research. • Preference for and experience with inter- and multidisciplinary research: more than 12 disciplines in social sciences, humanities and law are involved. • members of the consortium have selected their best researchers: 300 in total. This selection represents to a certain extent the history of immigration in Europe: countries of North-west Europe are stronger represented than those in the South. In Central and Eastern Europe immigration is so new that no institutes have been established yet. IMISCOE intends to function as an open consortium: • by building an infrastructure for training and dissemination that is open to all researchers • by engaging researchers from Central and Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean Basin in research • and accepting new membership of institutes from these areas in the course of time. C O M M U N I C A T I N G E U R O P E A N R E S E A R C H W h a t ’ s i n i t f o r y o u ?Brussels, 11-12 May 2004

6. TASKS of IMISCOE: The grant from DG Research has to be used for three essential task: • to integrate research programmes of the member institutes into a common European research programme • to design and implement training programmes, both for PhD-students and stakeholders • to establish an infrastructure that makes research findings readily available, for policy makers and the public at large. INTEGRATION activities are thus the core of IMISCOE’s tasks. The grant cannot be used to finance research projects itself. C O M M U N I C A T I N G E U R O P E A N R E S E A R C H W h a t ’ s i n i t f o r y o u ?Brussels, 11-12 May 2004

7. HOW TO BUILD AN INTEGRATED RESEARCH PROGRAMME? Generally by: • integrating standing research of IMISCOE-members • by developing three new, strategic lines of research. C O M M U N I C A T I N G E U R O P E A N R E S E A R C H W h a t ’ s i n i t f o r y o u ?Brussels, 11-12 May 2004

8. HOW TO BUILD AN INTEGRATED RESEARCH PROGRAMME? Ad a: 1) Creating nine clusters of researchers in the following sub-domains: C O M M U N I C A T I N G E U R O P E A N R E S E A R C H W h a t ’ s i n i t f o r y o u ?Brussels, 11-12 May 2004

9. HOW TO BUILD AN INTEGRATED RESEARCH PROGRAMME? 2)By working step-wise to integrate research in these cluster, starting with a state of the art-study of each cluster, followed by formulation of common framing and direction of future research. C O M M U N I C A T I N G E U R O P E A N R E S E A R C H W h a t ’ s i n i t f o r y o u ?Brussels, 11-12 May 2004

10. HOW TO BUILD AN INTEGRATED RESEARCH PROGRAMME? Ad b) New research lines Three new, strategic lines of common research will be developed to expedite the integration of the research programme. They cover issues crucial to European-level policy-making. They will be developed through comprehensive feasibility studies. 1. EUROLINKS is designed primarily to create a new framework for understanding migration to Europe in terms of various types of existing interconnections between geographical areas. This research line will have a special integrative function in seeking to systematically engage members from Central and Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean Basin. 2. INTPOL will focus on integration and its local and national policy nexus. 3. SOCO will analyze the political and social consequences of migration in European societies. It will focus on three forms of political mobilization and its interconnections: the anti-immigrant mobilization, anti-racist mobilization and political mobilization of immigrants themselves C O M M U N I C A T I N G E U R O P E A N R E S E A R C H W h a t ’ s i n i t f o r y o u ?Brussels, 11-12 May 2004

11. IMISCOE will contribute to • a knowledge based public debate on immigration and integration and • policies related to these topics on different level: from the local, through the national to the EU-level by: • building an infrastructure for solid research within the European Area • training researchers, stakeholders and policy makers in tailor made courses • disseminating results of research in forms that makes it easily accessible for politicians, policymakers, stakeholders and the public at large. C O M M U N I C A T I N G E U R O P E A N R E S E A R C H W h a t ’ s i n i t f o r y o u ?Brussels, 11-12 May 2004